Finally! Affordable internet (free!) Here are a selection of pics from the tour thus far…
Internet has been suprisingly difficult to find in europe. Our Appologies for the late update.
Hong Kong was an incredible experience - World Refugee Day went off without a hitch & was apparently very successful. Earlier in the week the choir sang at the Australian International School for both Junior & Senior classes. Our hosts, Crossroads International, were kind enough to give us the “Refugee Experience” of making paper bags out of newspaper & flour glue under extreme pressure. Besides getting covered with glue, it was a team building effort & it taught us all how important it was to rely on family in difficult situations. Plenty of market shopping & sweating all round as the weather was extremely hot & humid!
The last week, we’ve been sightseeing alot. Starting in London: 36 hours in the UK meant visiting all the sights possible in one day that many people take a week for. Tower of London, Tower Bridge, London Eye & many others - Photos to come (Soon hopefully). On to Paris: Again, a very short stay in Paris, all sights in one day - The highlight for most of the choir was the very top of the Eiffel Tower & shopping on the Champs Elysees. All in all a very expensive venture, but a very rewarding one. We travelled by coach all day to end up last night in Salzburg, Austria - the birthplace of Mozart. It’s glorious here, peaceful & surrounded by hills. There’s even a fortress “high on a hill”. Our hostel even shows The Sound Of Music every night at 8pm!
This afternoon we’re performing at the Mirabel Gardens & early tomorrow morning (ie. 2:30am) we fly out for Vienna & on to Copenhagen. Stay tuned for more updates, & HOPEFULLY photos. Feel free to leave comments. MISS YOU ALL!!!
After a bumpy 9 hour flight from Sydney we all landed safe and sound in Hong Kong. What followed was an impressive sea of blue GVYC touring shirts racing through Hong Kong International as we negotiated immigration checks and huge baggage carousels (89 pieces of luggage & sound equipment to look out for!). The GVYC tour group then charged onwards into the very hot and very humid Hong Kong night. We met our transport to Crossroads International: Two 61 seater busses!!! One for passengers and another just for luggage! After an awe inspiring trip around Hong Kong’s many bays & islands. We arrived to our accommodation at Crossroads International, tired and weary we found our rooms with inviting beds and kitchens stocked with goodies. Thankyou to the awesome Crossroads folks for making us feel most welcome. Stay tuned for more updates and pics as soon as we can get some time to post them!!
Today was the cumulation of over 4 years of blood sweat & tears of planning from Warren & the Tour committee. The choir members met bright and early at the “Kemps Creek International Bus Terminal” & “William Carey International Terminus”. After an uneventful trip to the airport and a surprisingly quick check in thanks to some friends at QANTAS the choir was ready & raring to go. An impromptu “Advance Australia Fair” for fellow travellers and we though we’d be off. Alas engine troubles delayed our flight out of Sydney for 2 hours… Pics and more soon!
With less than 1 week to tour departure, The tour committee and members are frantically putting the final touches on their performances and the many many logistics that go into a tour of this magnitude. The tour performance dates and venues have been posted, Click HERE for more info.
–Some snaps from the last Choir rehearsal before departure on 9th June 2008–
To coincide with the release of the choirs new album Our Song (more on that later!) The website has received a complete overhaul and been moved to a database backend. What all this gobbledygook means is easier updates and the ability to leave moderated comments for the choir folk to see. You can even subscribe to the site and be notified of updates if you have a modern browser (Look for the orange button!) Have fun & Stay tuned for more updates!
Take the Choir Sky HighWe are delighted to announce that Finland’s national airline, Finnair, is now the choir’s official carrier for the 40th Anniversary World Tour in 2008.
Helen Blake, marketing director for Finnair in Australia, said “We are delighted to have the Green Valley Youth Choir on board for this very special occasion to mark their 40th anniversary”.
Finnair will fly the choir from Hong Kong to London via Helsinki. In addition, the Choir will also be flying with the airline from Vienna to Copenhagen and Warsaw to New York. It will be an experience for the group to fly on the classic MD-11 Trijet and the newer A320 Airbus.
The choir are hoping to be featured in a special article that will appear in the June 2008 edition of “Bluewings”, the official in-flight magazine of Finnair. This article is being specifically written by Australian music historian and renowned travel writer, Glenn A. Baker, who has supported the choir over many years.
During the tour, Finnair representatives are also looking at the possibility of the choir doing a special performance for their staff in Helsinki.
Award winning Australian singer / songwriter Helen Mottee will join up with the choir in Helsinki. She will then fly with the choir for the USA and Canadian sections of the World Tour.
Choir director, Warren Barnett, said “We are thrilled to have one of the world’s most respected airlines come on board for our international and European flights”.
Finnair will also celebrate their 85th anniversary in November 2008 so it will be a year of achievement for both the Choir and Finnair.
Warren (our Choir Director) received a lengthy phone call from aid organization, Crossroads International in Hong Kong, at the beginning of April, about the possibility of producing a new song written by Helen Mottee titled “Do You” and getting it recorded for the UNHCR. Continue reading ‘Choir Recording a Song for the UNHCR with Helen Mottee’